Driver charged after officer is dragged during traffic stop

Nassau police say an officer is lucky to be alive after he was dragged by a car during a traffic stop in Hempstead.

Police say 21-year-old Dwayne Henderson is accused of dragging the officer, who had approached his car at the Gulf gas station on Greenwich Street around 5 p.m. Sunday. The incident was caught on surveillance video.

Police say the officer's hand became stuck on the car’s door handle, and he was dragged as the driver allegedly tried to flee. The car's rear tire also ran the officer over at one point, officials say.

The officer, identified as Richard Bruno, was hospitalized with injuries and has since been released.

Police eventually tracked down Henderson to Macon Place in Uniondale, where they say he tried to run from a car and then resisted arrest.

Henderson is also accused of being in possession of crack-cocaine.

He was charged with assault, reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Henderson was ordered held on $30,000 bond or $15,000 cash at his arraignment in Hempstead Monday.

News 12 has learned that it's not the first time Officer Bruno survived a life-threatening experience. At the age of 17, he was diagnosed with brain cancer and survived. He then enlisted in the military and served in Afghanistan, all before signing up for the Nassau Police Department.

Authorities say Henderson was out on parole at the time of the incident. He has a prior arrest and conviction for burglary, according to prosecutors.